Reviews and Other Stuff

Sephora Collection Mini Deluxe Charcoal Antibacterial Brush Set

March 15, 2017 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

I recently updated my travel makeup brushes which were made by Sephora a few years ago. There were those mini red-handle brushes that came with a tiny red pouch, which is no longer sold in Sephora website nowadays. They were good brushes and they served their purpose. But they were getting old, so it’s time to purchase a new one. Now I got these Sephora Collection Mini Deluxe Charcoal Antibacterial Brush Set for $42, which is a $105 value according to Sephora. I was drawn to these brushes because I needed something really lightweight, tiny and easy to carry makeup brushes for my travels.

These Sephora Mini Deluxe Charcoal Antibacterial Brushes are the compact version of the Sephora Deluxe Charcoal Antibacterial Brush Set which are full-size brushes that retails for $62. I preferred the minis because I have small hands and sometimes I tend to bump my brushes against the vanity mirror due my nearsightedness. It’s hard to be myopic, ya know.

There are 6 brushes in this Sephora Mini Deluxe Antibacterial Brush Set. Each brush is around 3.7 to 4 inches tall, and each brush fiber is infused with charcoal for hygienic purposes. The entire brush set is housed in a compact and bi-fold wallet-looking pouch. Which is cute and practical to carry around.

Large Foundation Brush – A wide facial brush that really works better for applying liquid foundations because it’s dense and flat. I would have wanted it to be poofy so that it’ll also work with powder foundations, but since I use my liquid foundations a lot, well, I think this will be good enough.
Precision Sweep Brush – Love this brush a lot for contouring and strobing.
Angled Blush Brush – Great for applying blushes and could double as an overall face brush or for powder foundations.
Angled Concealer Brush – Very practical for under-eye concealing application or for covering blemishes. I love the angled-shape of this concealer brush a lot.
All Over Shadow Brush – Dome-shaped brush for packing colors on the lid, though the fibers are a bit long and may be tricky to apply for small eyes.
Angled Liner Brush – Great for eyeliner and eyebrow application.

The charcoal-infused fiber of these Sephora Collection Mini Deluxe Antibacterial Brushes is also one of the reason why I was attracted to these brushes. I love the hygienic idea of these brushes and they’re REALLY soft even though they’re 100% synthetic fibers. A lot of people complained that these brushes stink. I also thought so at the beginning and noticed the funky smell. Well, apparently, as I sniffed each individual brush, I realized that they don’t stink at all. No it’s not the charcoal, it’s the carrying pouch that smells like fish or some may say dead rat? Hehehe, probably not that exaggerated, but yeah, the pouch of these brushes slightly stinks. I wish Sephora sprinkled it with some charcoal too. But you can always put these brushes in another container, so don’t worry ‘bout a thing, ‘cause every little thing gonna be all right…

These Sephora Collection Mini Deluxe Antibacterial Brush Set is available at http://www.sephora.com

and its full-size travel brush-set cousin is also available HERE.

Have you tried these brushes? If you, did you have the same observation as mine? What’s your favorite travel brush-set?

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Marc Jacobs Fineliner Ultra-Skinny Gel Eye Crayon Eyeliner Review

March 14, 2017 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Hello from a Blizzard Tuesday! It’s March and yeah it’s still snowing from where I am. Anyway, I have to let it go, let it go, the cold doesn’t bother me anyway, ows? Anyway, I have a very interesting eyeliner to counteract the cold. It may be a winter storm out there, but my eyeliner is always sleek and ready for whatever may come, ha!. I mean, you don’t wanna be caught looking like a hot mess in the snow, right? Hehehe. No ice bucket challenge makeup look here. I don’t ‘bout y’all, but I want my face to look as flawless as ever (though it’s not) even if I just slipped onto a huge pile of ice. Like nothing happened at all. What ice? My eyeliner slays. LOL. Anyways, this eyeliner that I’ve been using recently is by Marc Jacobs, called Fineliner Ultra-Skinny Gel Eye Crayon Eyeliner. It’s the slim version of the very famous Marc Jacobs Highliner. Now that MJ Highliner has been updated recently with its new release of the Matte Gel Eye Crayon Eyeliner, and the shades are really GOOD. I bet the formulations remain to be good if not better too. But my problem with the MJ Highliner is the fact that its tip is too thick for my small hooded eyes. Whenever I use it, I feel like I’m attracting the wrong elements. Haha! I just think that it looks too much for my eyes, specially during the day.

The thing I love about this Marc Jacobs Fineliner is simply its thinness. It’s easier for me to work it around my eyelids, and it really allows for a very precise if not accurate application. Plus, it doesn’t make me look like I’m auditioning for Into The Badlands. Hehehe. In fact, for a very long time, I’m a huge fan of skinny eyeliners. The sharper, the better. That’s why I love Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner and Kat Von D Tattoo Liner because their applicators are really thin and their formulas are very long lasting, but you really need a steady hand and skillful application technique because it’s hard to make a mistake once these eyeliners are applied. So for the days when I feel like I may need to apply my eyeliner quickly and precisely, I use non-liquid skinny eyeliners like this Marc Jacobs Fineliner.

There’s not a lot of color choices for this Marc Jacobs Fineliner Ultra-Skinny Eye Crayon. But its formulation is pretty much exactly the same as the MJ Highliner. It’s also waterproof, long-wearing, well-pigmented and it glides easily on the lids. It’s very easy to use and is also ideal for tightlining and on the waterline.

A lot of people said that this particular eyeliner smudges, but it really depends. While it doesn’t smudge immediately upon application, I suggest using an eyelid primer to prevent that, even if you’re not gonna wear any eyeshadow at all. The same is true for someone who is prone to have oily lids like yours truly here. Removing this eyeliner requires a waterproof makeup remover, or any waterproof eye makeup remover and perhaps with the aid of a few cotton swabs.

I fell in love with the shades; Blacquer – the backest and darkest shade in the line, and Blacquerberry – a berry-violet shade, which is a unique and simply different shade that won’t make your eyes look bruised.

The Marc Jacobs Fineliner Ultra-Skinny Gel Eye Crayon retails for $24, while the Marc Jacobs Highliner Gel Eye Crayon retails for $25.

Have you tried these two? Which ones do you prefer?

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Laura Mercier Candleglow Soft Luminous Foundation Review

March 13, 2017 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Hey Everybody! Guess what, I have found another favorite and holy grail foundation. The Laura Mercier Candleglow Soft Luminous Foundation. I’ve read good reviews about this foundation because it’s ideal for those who wants a sheer or natural coverage with a dewy look or finish. My kind of foundation, even though my skin tends to be on the oily side. But in this cold winter days, I need all the moisturization and dewiness I could get.

This particular foundation is quite similar to the Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer Broad Spectrum Spf 20 which I’m still very much in love at. Yet this LM Candleglow Soft Luminous Foundation probably has a bit more coverage but does not have any Spf, which is a sigh, but you can always add a separate Spf, or make sure that your favorite moisturizer has an added Spf. Though quite similar, this foundation is on the sheer to medium coverage, but can be quite buildable. It follows the same scent as the Laura Mercier Flawless Skin Mega Moisturizer Spf 15, but only subtly. Even though it lacks Spf, it compensates for how it makes the skin look natural, flawless and almost-perfect. It has a dewy or glowy finish but not to the extreme. The fine pearl-mica is the one responsible for this foundation’s luminous effect on the skin. Yet, the luminous-effect is very very subtle and indeed almost candle-lit.

laura mercier candleglow soft luminous foundation honey — Laura Mercier Candleglow Soft Luminous Foundation in Honey

A lot people love this foundation, but a lot may say that it doesn’t give enough coverage and it makes the skin look oily, which isn’t really ideal for anyone with an oily skin. Well, those are true observations, but it all boils down to your skin’s current condition, and of course the weather. For my wide angle ciabatta bread face ???? , matte foundations won’t add definition to my face, no matter the amount of contouring I use. So I always opt for dewy or luminous finishes in my foundations. Sometimes, specially in the summer, I mix my dewy foundations with a few of my matte foundations, just to not get so oily after a while. So I suggest this Laura Mercier Candleglow Soft Luminous Foundation if you want a natural finish that also allows for the natural definition of your face to show through. Though buildable, it’s true that this foundation is quite sheer, but it’s enough to cover the redness of my cheeks and some other blemishes. But if your face has a lot of stuff going on, then you may have to use full-coverage foundations. Also, this foundation has emollient oils that may make the skin look very oily in the summer. I wouldn’t advise to use this in the summer, specially for those with oily skin. But from where I live, where it’s really bone-chilling right now, oh well, this didn’t make my skin look oily at all. Just dewy and I could probably get a good 4-6 hours of wear with this before I start looking for oil-blotting sheets.

laura mercier candleglow soft luminous foundation in honey shade — Laura Mercier Candleglow Soft Luminous Foundation in Honey – blended

There are 24 shades available in this foundation. My shade is Honey, which is a light to medium shade with a neutral undertone. However, I find that some shades like Buff, Macadamia, Dune, Golden, Butterscotch, Linen and even Vanille seem to also blend really well on my NC25-30 skin, since this foundation is quite sheer.

Sans Spf, but with a natural dewy finish with added Vitamin C & E derivatives. If not perfect, this Laura Mercier Candleglow Soft Luminous Foundation is the next best thing.

FYI: Nail color is Splash of Grenadine by Essie.

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